E3 2011: Announcements for Wii and DS news

With so much new content announced for 3DS and with the announcement of Wii U, it’s sad to conclude that the Wii and DS are really nearing the end of their lifespan. Luckily, there’s still plenty of content to look forward to for both Wii and DS, including Skyward Sword, probably the last triple A title to be released on the Wii. Other exciting titles include new Kirby games, a new Mario Party and sequels to Wii Play, Dragon’s Quest: Monster Joker and Professor Layton.

The biggest Wii release to look out for is of course The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and with the introduction of motion controls with Wii Motion Plus and a story that’s set to lay the foundations for Ocarina of Time, the title is sure to be a must-have. The best selling title on the Wii is Wii Play and now there’s a sequel. The first game was bundled with a Wii Remote, selling millions of copies in the process and the sequel, Wii Play Motion will be bundled with a Wii Remote Plus. Will it sell as much as the first game? Probably not, but the game looks like a nice collection of 12 new and exciting minigames and promises to give more value than the first game.

Wii Play Motion is not set to be another million seller, but will probably be a solid buy thanks to the included Wii Remote Plus

Fans of party games can rejoice as Mario is back in a new Mario Party. The formula is well-known and the game promises to deliver traditional antics and plenty of laughs. Another party game is Fortune Street, which is already a big hit in Japan. You play as Nintendo characters and characters from Dragon Quest in a board game focussing on real estate and the stock market. Find out later this year if this money making game is as fun as it sounds.

Mario and Sonic will be back on the Wii in Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Like the 3DS version, the game will feature plenty of new events for fun single and multiplayer sessions. In the music and rhythm category, players can look out for Rhythm Heaven, which has already seen an instalment on DS and Just Dance 3, a new sequel in the popular Just Dance series. Other Wii games announced were Mystery Case Files: The Malgrave Incident, Go Vacation and Centipede Infestation.

Kirby is back with not just one, but two new games

Kirby for Wii is easily one of the more exciting games announced. After Epic Yarn, Kirby is ready for another winner on Wii and this time it’s a more traditional Kirby game. This means Kirby can copy the powers of enemies he inhales, which makes for great and varied gameplay. New are “Super Abilities”. When Kirby swallows special enemies, he can use their super powers, one of which is the ability to swing a giant sword. A fantastic new addition is four-player cooperative play and players can join and leave the game at any time. Kirby for Wii is looking great and will be a blast to play for fans and non-fans alike.

Kirby is also back on the DS. In Kirby Mass Attack, the fluffy pink creature will face new challenges. In the game, Kirby is split into ten pieces, enabling all kinds of new challenges for the player, who now has to control ten pieces of Kirby with the stylus. By swiping the touch screen, players can launch the Kirby bits into enemies and solve puzzles in original ways. RPG fans can rejoice, because a new Dragon Quest game is coming, this time in the form of Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2. The formula isn’t much different from the first game as players collect monsters to build a team to fight enemies. This time, the game features a variety of WiFi Connection modes including World Tournament and Tag Mode. Other DS titles to look out for the fighting game Super Fossil Fighters and a new entry in the popular Professor Layton series: Professor Layton and the Last Specter.

Xenoblade Chronicles, where are you?

There are some nice titles to look out for still, but Nintendo, where are Xenoblade Chronicles and The Last Story for Wii? There are lot of gamers desperately hoping for western releases for these titles, but considering their absence at E3, we may never see them. Wikipedia still lists Xenoblade’s release as September this year, but somehow that seems doubtful. Still, with an amazing looking Zelda game and two Kirby games in the pipeline, 2011 is not without highlights for DS and Wii owners.